Anybody heard of Jennings Research speakers circa 1970s? I'm lookin' at a set of towers with dual 8" woofers for $20.
I currently employ an older Onkyo amp (TX-DS-494). I'd either shift my Sony SSK-Series bookshelf speakers to the back or I'd shift 'em to be computer speakers . . .
eh . . . I was just wonderin' if anybody had ever heard of 'em . . . I wasn't alive in the 70s . . .
I also am a college kid (by definition, broke) So I'm interested in reasonably priced sound equipment. I also have been afflicted with the like of quality sound (which I know you can't tell from my current gear), but one of these days when I have more disposable income, I'll get some reasonably nice equipment.
" ... one of these days when I have more disposable income, I'll get some reasonably nice equipment."
We all will, son. We all will.
Check the other threads for some ideas regarding inexpensive components that offer high performance for the dollar. The current issue of The Absolute Sound has listings of systems that make music and start as low as $875. That may seem like a lot of cash at the monent but the earlier models from the same companies will typically offer good value and can be purchased for far less money.
i have a pair of Jennings Research boxes, sort of squarish 2 ways w/ a 6" driver and a 2" horn. they look dinky but sound awesome. i paid 15 at a garage sale in '85 or so. they refuse to die. i google the name occasionally and this time you came up but you don't know any more than i do, too bad. i'm running them w/ a 1981 Luxman amp that also has death issues. I wish this rig didn't sound so good because it weighs a ton and heats the house in the winter and unfortunately the summer too.
I don't wish to impune anyone's taste in speakers but "they look dinky but sound awesome" is advice relative only to their size. We have had posters on this forum in love with their Cerwin Vegas and we get quite a few questions concerning Bose products. However, for $20, they "sound awesome" might be all you need to close the deal.
Heh, thanks for your input y'all. I'll buy 'em and post my thoughts on 'em in a couple days. (I have to run 'em through my guantlet of music/movies first . . . ) If I really can't stand 'em, I could always re-list 'em for $20 and sell them myself . . .)
I don't think they're the same as analog's pair either. These are about 3 foot tall floorstanding speakers . . .
Well, here's my first thoughts (no movies yet, just music.)
On construction: The cabinets are fairly large, and seem to be made of 3/4" to 1" real wood (not mdf or particle board with a fake wood laminate.)
There is dual paper woofers (7 1/4") and a 1 1/4" dome tweeter (possibly silk?) set into the sealed enclosure.
My old speakers are Sony SSK series bookshelf speakers. These oblong ported speakers house a 6 1/4" (Kevlar?) woofer and a 1" Silk Dome tweeter allegedly sensitive to 50kHz.
Setup: I hooked 'em up to my trusty ol' Onkyo Amp (TX-494 55 WPC into 8 ohms) on the 'B' channel. On the 'A' channel I kept my old Sony SSKs. I then set the amp to no sub 2 channel mode and flattened the EQ.
I popped in my relatively new four80east CD (which I've listened to incessantly since I'd got it), into my admittedly cheap DVD player.
Listening: My first thought is that it's very difficult to A-B speakers that have different sensitivities.
The Jennings Research Speakers are noticeably more sensitive than my old Sony SSKs.
When I first turned 'em on, it seemed like the Jennings had slightly better bass extension . . . I'll get to the "seemed" part later. Overall, though, the bass was reasonably tight (remember I've had limited speaker experience). The smoothness of saxophone over the tight grooves translated into a pleasant listening experience.
I did notice that the mid-range and upper-mid range seemed to come through a bit clearer on the Jennings than the old Sonys. I'll readily admit that I'm a warmth guy, and they sounded a bit bright on first pass, that could translate into a fatiguing listening experience down the road . . . we'll see.
I switched over to my bass testing CD. From the test tones, It seemed that the old sonys actually have (very) slightly better bass extension. I'm well aware that bass can be very tough to track down during straight A-B listening. I think my original assessment might have been thrown off by the sensitivity difference.
Conclusion: Anyway, At this juncture, it's too close to call whether or not the Jennings Research beasts beat out the old Sony SSKs. I'll have more time for testing later. It seems that they were worth the $20, even if I do end up just givin' 'em away later.
In the mean time, do y'all have any suggestions for what I might do to help test the speakers?